Condo collapse: Families to receive ashes of workers

The bodies of all three Cambodians killed in the collapse of a condominium under construction in the north of Bangkok have been recovered.

The search and rescue mission ended on Friday when the 14th and final body was retrieved, five days after the collapse. The accident also injured 25 workers, five of whom – including Cambodian Chhim Chan, 60 – remain in hospital.

“[The victims’] families decided to cremate them there and then bring the ashes back to Cambodia,” said Koy Kuong, Foreign Ministry spokesman.

The victims’ families received 6,500 baht ($200) each in compensation from the Thai government, but were given no assistance to repatriate the ashes. Thai workers reportedly received more than four times that and more for funeral expenses, plus funds from the construction firm.

Yat Meng, whose 20-year-old brother died in the collapse, said that now “the whole family will rely on me”.

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